MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — A global population of patients with prediabetes that is three times the size of those who already have Type 2 diabetes has led to intense competition between drug makers to launch drugs to treat the disease, according to a new report.

Frost & Sullivan's report, "Analysis of the Global Type 2 Diabetes Therapeutic Market," found that 15 new drugs are in late-stage clinical trials or awaiting regulatory review. According to the American Diabetes Association, 25.8 million people in the United States are living with diabetes, mostly with Type 2, which is lifestyle-related, while 79 million people have prediabetes, defined as a condition in which patients are at risk of developing full-blown Type 2 diabetes.

"The Type 2 diabetes market continually advances, primarily due to the dominance of obesity," Frost & Sullivan life sciences global program director Jennifer Lazar Brice said. "Current studies of this increasingly competitive market are limited in their approach. Seeing this missed opportunity, we began addressing such markets in a new way. Our repositioned life sciences program includes therapeutic product and pipeline analyses and services focused on our clients' proactive competitive intelligence goals."

The report found that a "tremendous" increase in Type 2 diabetes is in store, and the industry needs better ways to prevent the disease from progressing. This includes identifying the precursors to fully developed diabetes through preventive therapy.